Refugees in Urban Environments: Social, Economic, and Infrastructure Impacts
Abstract
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has estimated that in 2015 there were 21.3 million refugees worldwide; it is estimated that 1.8 million of these persons were newly displaced during 2015. As refugees leave their country to seek the protection of another nations government, they generally flow into urban areas. The impact of this flow on cities and on the refugees, themselves, is not fully understood. This study is focused on the impact of government policy decisions on the social, legal, and economic integration of refugees within an urban environment. Investigation into this topic resulted in the development of a system dynamics model representing the city of Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The results of a designed experiment on the model indicate that economic policy directed towards refugees or specific ethnic groups results in positive trends of integration within a city system. This pilot study provides insight into the impacts of refugee flow and policy decisions within the applied context of an urban model.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 23, 2017
- Accession Number
- AD1055139
Entities
People
- Jameson L. Garrett
Organizations
- Air Force Institute of Technology